Automatic telegraphy.



No. 630,|52. Patented Aug. l, I899. S. WHITEHALL.

AUTOMATIC TELEGBAPHY.

(Application filed Feb. 21; 1899.)

No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet l.

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No. 630,l52. Patented Au I899 s. WHITEHALL. g AUTOMATIC TELEGRAPHY.

(Application filed Feb. 21, 1899.)

2 Sheets Sheet 2.

(No Model.)

khlmw INVENTOR 7/ Tu: nonms PETERS p0, minuumo wumumou. n. c.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

SAMUEL \VHITEHALL, OF SOUTH BEND, INDIANA.

AUTOMATIC TELE G RAPHY.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N 0. 630,1 52, dated August 1, 1899.

Application filed February 21,1899. Serial No. 706,346. (No model.)

To aZZ whom it 'nmy concern.-

Be it known that I, SAMUEL WHITEHALL, of South Bend, in the county of St. Joseph and State of Indiana, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Automatic Telegraphy; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to whichitappertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to an improvement in automatic telegraphy.

Heretotore it has been proposed to transmit written or printed and pictorial messages telegraphically with the use of two cylinders, one containing the message to be transmitted and the other adapted to have the message reproduced thereon, a stylus being used in cooperation with each cylinder and the cylinders and the stylus connected in an electric circuit with a generator. The message has been arranged on the transmitting-cylinder and is taken up by a stylus in the form of a number of lines disposed side by side, and as these lines,traced by the stylus,intermittingly close the circuit, including the two instruments, results in a reproduction of the message on the cylinder of the receiver. To effect an accurate reproduction of the message on the receiving-cylinder, the lines must be reproduced in exact accordance with thelines traced by the stylus on the transmitting-cylinder and the lines on the receiver must bear exactly the same relation to each other as those made by the stylus on the transmitter. To insure this result, it was necessary that there be perfect synchronism between the two instruments, the two-cylinders made to rotate, and the two stylus made to move exactlyin unison. This is exccedinglydiflicnlt to accomplish; and it is the object of' my invention to provide means whereby to render the matter of synchronism a secondary consideration.

A further objectis to so construct a receiver for automatic telegraphy that the lines produced thereon can be adjusted and brought into proper relation to each other should said receiving instrument move faster or slower than the transmitter.

A further object is to provide a surface for the receiver for automatic telegraphy the parts of which surface will be movable relatively to each other.

With these objects in view the invention consists in certain novel features of construction and combinations and arrangements of parts, as hereinafter set forth, and pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a diagrammatical view showing a transmitter and receiver connected in an electric circuit. Fig. 2 is a detail View illustrating the cylinder. Figs. 3 and t are detail views. Figs. 5 and 6 are views illustrating modifications. Figs. 7, 8, 9, and 10 are views illustrating the steps which are taken in preparinga message received and reproduced in colors.

A represents a transmitter,and B a receiver, the general construction of which is in most respects similar.

The transmitter comprises a suitable base 1, on which, near one end thereof, a motor A is located. A standard 2 is disposed at or near the other end of the base, and between said standard and the motor a cylinder 0 is mounted and connected with the motor, so as to be driven thereby. be constructed of any suitable metal; but it is preferably built up of a number of circular disks a, placed side by side on a shaft connected with the motor, and said disks may be inclosed by a removable metal cylindrical cover 0. The transmitter-surface of the cylinder C may be made in various ways. It may consist of a sheet of any suitable non-conducting material I), having letters, characters, diagrams, or pictures, constituting a message, cut therefrom, so as to expose themetal peripheral face of the cylinder, or said cylinder may be coated with wax, portions of which may be removed by etching or otherwise, whereby to expose the metallic conductingsurface of the cylinder. A screw 4: is mounted at one end to rotate freely in a standard 5 on the base A, and at its other end said screw is mounted to rotate freely in the motor-frame. A carrierbar is adapted to travel thereon from end to end of the cylinder, said carrier-bar 6 being prevented from turning with the screw by means of a guide-rod 7, on which it moves freely. A spring-arm 8 is se- The cylinder 0 may cured at one end to the carrier-bar 6, and projecting partially over the cylinder carries at its free end a stylus or tracing-point i). During the rotation of the cylinder of the receiver the stylus 9 will trace the message in a series of parallel lines disposed side by side, each line encircling the cylinder and correspond ing with one of the disks thereof. The stylus remains stationary during each revolution of the cylinder, but should be automatically fed laterally a distance equal to the thickness of the disks at the completion of each revolution of the cylinder. To accomplish this, one end of the screw is provided with a pinion 10, which receives motion from a series of teeth 11 on one head of the cylinder, the number of the teeth 11 being such as to turn the screw sufficiently at each revolution of the cylinder to cause the stylus-carrier to move a distance equal to the diameter of one of the disks composing the cylinder.

The receiver 13 is the same in mechanical construction as the transmitter above described, except in the construction of the stylus and its carrier. In fact, the transmitter above described maybe used for a receiver by removing the metal cover 0' and employing a striking-stylus. The carrier-bar 12 of the receiver is provided with an electromagnet 13, and the spring-arm let, to which the stylus 15 is secured, is provided with an armature 16 for said magnet. A contact-spring 17, insulated from the spring-arm l-i, is adapted to cooperate with the latter and the magnet to form a rheotome, whereby to cause the stylus to vibrate and rapidly engage the cylinder. The rheotome of the receiver is included in an electric circuit with the stylus and cylinder of the transmitter, so that as the cylinder of the transmitter revolves the stylus.

of the receiver will vibrate as long as said stylus 9 of the transmitter is in contact with the exposed metallic face of the latter, resulting in the formation of a series of lines of dots on the receiving-surface corresponding with the lines on the transmitter-surface.

The reproduction of a message may be produced on the cylinder of the receiver in various ways without departing from the spirit of my invention. In the drawings I have shown the cylinder of the receiver covered with asheet 18, which maybe copying'paper or cloth inked or otherwise prepared on its face next to the cylinder, so that when the stylus 15 strikes it a dot or series of dots or impressions will be made on the cylinder, and from these impressions a reproduction of the message can be made.

As hereinbefore stated, great difficulty has been experienced in accurately reproducing pictorial and similar messages on account of practical impossibility to secure absolute synehronism between the transmitter and receiver. It is apparent that if the cylinder of the receiver were permitted to rotate either faster or slower than the cylinder of the transmitter the parallel lines of the reproduced message would not properly aline, and hence the message would be exceedingly rough and imperfect. By means of myimproved cylinder (whereby a receiving-surface is formed every partof which is adjustable relatively to each other) I am enabled by turning the disks, or some of them, more or less in one direction than the other to bring the various lines composing the message into proper alinement, and thus insure the ultimate formation of a message which will be a facsimile in every detail of the message on the transmitter. To quickly and successfully accomplish this result, the message is provided with a correction-line 20, as shown in Fig. 1, which extends transversely across the message and at right angles to the lines composing the message. This line is made on the face of the transmitter-cylinder in the same manner as is the message and is transmitted and reproduced on the cylinder of the receiver in the same manner and at the same time as is the message. Thus it is clear that by turning the disks of the receiver more or less until the correction-line appears perfect and straight the numerous lines composing the message will be made to assume the proper positions relatively to each other and present a perfect reproduction of the message. If the receiver should run slower than the transmitter, the message would be narrower from bottom to top than the one sent. Therefore after the message has been corrected with respect to the parallel lines by moving the disks of the cylinder, as above explained, the message will be transferred to an elastic surface 25, Fig. i, such as sheet-rubber, which can be stretched more or less to correct the slight defect in the width (from bottom to top) of the message. From this elastic surface the message can be printed. In effecting the transfer of the message to the rubber sheet the cylinder will be rolled over the latter, so as to transfer the ink of the message thereto.

Messages or pictures of several colors may be transmitted by the use of a guide-line 21, made on the message at right angles to the correction-line, as shown in Fig. 1, said guideline serving to insure the proper interposition of several messages composing a picture, each message (when reproduced from the receiver)havingadilferentcolor. Forinstance, if it be desired to transmit a flag, map, or other representation with several colors several messages'representing the different parts thereof which it is desired shall be differently colored on the reproduced picture or representation at the receiving end of the line will be prepared for the transmitter and each message will be transmitted separately and the several messages will be subsequently associated, the accurate location of each message being insured by the guide-line and each printed in its proper color until the picture or representation shall have been completed.

To be more specific in describing the mannor of receiving and reproducing a message in colors, attention may first be called to the factthat a separate submessage for each color desired must be sent, using on the receiver copying-paper of the particular color desired for each of said separate submessages. The messages (or, more correctly speaking, the submessages) are prepared in the usual manner and sent one at a time and by their correction line corrected upon the cylinder of the receiver and printed therefrom upona sheet of paper, the proper position of each of these component submessages upon the sheet of paper being shown by the correctionline across the top and the guide-line at the side. The different colors of copying-paper may be conveniently designated by numbers, thus: No. I may designate black, No. 2 blue, No. 3 red, No. 4- green, the. Now if I desire to send the American flag I would first send a submessage representing the staff and shadows of the folds, as shown in Fig. 7, and direct that copying-paper No. 1 be used. The message bearing theguide-line 21 will be received, corrected, and printed from the sectional receiver upon a sheet of white paper, as above explained. Next, a message representing the blue field, as shown in Fig. 8, will be sent in like manner, the sender directingthereeeiving operator to use copyingpaper No. 2. The second message will, with the use of the correction and guide lines, be printed over the first message. The next step will be to send a message representingthe red stripes, Fig. 9, directing the receiving operator to use copying-paper No. The third message will be printed over the other two (with the assistance of the correction and guide lines) and the completed flag will be the result, as shown in Fig. 10, the white stripes and stars being represented by the blank paper. Should it be found that the message is too short because of the running of the receiver at adifferent speed from that of the transmitter, the various messages or submessages may be printed upon sheet-rubher, which can be stretched to lengthen the message and then used as a plate from which to print on paper.

Instead of making the receiver in the form of a cylinder composed of a number of disks a flat receiving-surface maybe employed and composed of a series of strips 22, adjustably connected together by means of bolts 23, as shown in Fig. 5.

The adjustable surface of the receivingcylinder might be made by covering a plain cylinder 26 with elastic material 27, such as sheet-rubber, in which case the cylinder could be made of a single piece. When a rubber receiving-surface is used, the lines comprising the message can be corrected and brought into proper alinement by stretching parts of the sheet-rubber.

If desired, the message might be reproduced directly upon the face of a cylinder made in one. piece, then transferred to an adjustable surface, such as sheet-rul' ber, then corrected, as before explained, and then reproduced by printing from said adjustable surface.

When the receiving-surface is composed of rubber or similar. material, the necessity for step-by-step motion of the transmitter and receiver-stylus will be avoided and said stylus can be made to move continuously as the cylinders revolve.

Various slight changes might be made in the details of construction of my invention without departing from the spirit thereof 'or limiting its scope, and hence I do not wish to limit myself to the precise details herein set forth.

Having fully described my invention, what I clai m as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1.. A receiving-surface for use in automatic telegraphy having the parts thereof adj ustable relatively to each other.

2. In automatic telegraphy, a movable body having a surface the parts of which are adjustable relatively to each other, a stylus co operating with said surface and means for moving said movable body and stylus.

3. A cylinder for use in automatic telegraphy consisting of a series of disks adjustably disposed relatively to each other, substantially as set forth.

4. In automatic telegraphy, the combination with a transmitter, of a receiver electrically connected with and operated by said transmitter, said receiver comprising a stylus and a movable device cooperating with said stylus and having a su rface, the parts of which are adjustable relatively to each other.

5. In automatic telegraphy, the combination with a transmitter adapted to transmit a series of parallel lines composing a message, of a sectional receiver, means for reproducing said lines of the message on the sections of said receiver, and means for adjusting the sections of the receiver relatively to each other.

6. In automatic telegraphy, the combination with a transmitter comprising a movable body and a stylus adapted to transmit a mes sage composed of a series of parallel lines, of a sectional receiver, a stylus to reproduce the lines composing the message on the sections of the receiver, means for moving both of said styluses step by step to cause them to move from line to line of the message.

7. The herein-described system consisting in transmitting telegraphically, a series of parallel lines composing a message; reproducing said lines on an adjustable surface, and then adjusting said surface to bring the lines composing the message into proper alinement and in conformity to the lines on the receiver.

8. The herein-described system consisting in preparing a message consisting of a series of parallel lines by exposing a metallic surface representing the message; exposing said metallic surface to form a correction-line at right angles to the lines of the message; exposing said metallic surface to form a guideline at right angles to the correction-line and then transmitting and reproducing said message,correction-line and guide-line telegraphically and correcting said message by means of the correction and guide lines.

9. The herein-described system of transmitting a picture or map to be reproduced in colors, consisting in transmitting telegraphicallya number of messages equal to the number of parts or colors of the picture or map, and simultaneously transmitting with each message, a guide-line parallel with the lines composing the message,reproducing each message in a different color and subsequently assembling said colored messages one upon another in accordance with the guide-lines to form the reproduced picture or map.

10. The hercin-described system consisting in transmitting telegraphically, a series of parallel lines; reproducing said lines on an adjustable surface, adjusting the lines so that one end of all the lines will be in aliuement; then transferring the corrected message onto an elastic surface, and stretching said elastic surface so as to increase the width (from top to bottom) of the message and make it conform in size to the message transmitted.

In testimony whereof I have signed this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

SAMUEL WHITEHALL.

Vita esses:

A. B. FRANCE, WILLIAM L. KIZER. 

